At Lionel Primary School we teach phonics, reading and writing through our Read Write Inc
programme in Nursery, Reception and KS1. We also run, Fresh Start and 1:1 tuition through the rest
of the school and where necessary for children who require extra support.
We believe strongly that reading is the most important skill that children must master during their
time at primary school. Everything depends on it, so we put as much energy as we can into making
sure that every child learns to read as quickly as possible. We want your child to learn to read so
they can not only enjoy reading but also so they can read to learn.
What is Read Write Inc?
Read write Inc is a systematic phonic and reading programme which is great fun and very effective.
Our children are grouped according to reading ability and are assessed regularly and moved as they
progress. The children start by learning 44 ‘speed sounds’ and how to sound blend for reading. At
the same time they develop skills of handwriting and spelling. They progress to read and
comprehend lively storybooks containing words that they can decode so they achieve early success
in reading.
The scheme works on a premise of Red and Green Words.
Green words
Green words are words which can be broken down into sounds, and blended together to read.
Green word practice
http://www.ictgames.com/phonemePatterns/index.html
Red words
Red words are words that cannot be broken down into sounds. These are taught explicitly, and are
words that children need to be able to read on sight. Below is a link to a list of the red words that
children need to be able to read:
Fred Talk
When reading, your child will be encouraged to sound out any words they cannot read, we call this
Fred Talk. For those of you that don’t know, Fred is a frog! Fred can only talk in sounds. Fred knows
there are 44 sounds in our language. He knows that sounds must be pure and distinct so children can
sound-blend.
c-a-t= cat
ch-i-p=chip
l-igh-t=light
(avoid cuh-a-tuh, chuh-i-puh, luh-igh-tuh)
Fred Fingers
(Looking at fingertip side not nail side)
When sounding out the word ‘feet’(use the letter sounds)
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Ask your children how many sounds they can hear in ‘feet’
Ask your child to put up their (they should be holding up 3) Fred fingers
Push the first finger and say ‘f’
Push the middle fingers and say ‘ee’
Push the last finger and say ‘t’
Swipe under all three fingers and say the whole word
Fred Fingers for Spelling
(Using letter names and not the sounds)
When writing the word ‘fair’
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Fair has two sounds ‘f’ and ‘air’
On the first finger you write ‘f’ and on the second finger you write ‘air’
Saying the letter names as you write each letter on each finger.
RWI terminology
Synthetic phonics: Synthetic Phonics is a way of teaching reading. Children are taught to read letters
or groups of letters by saying the sound(s) they represent – so, they are taught that the
letter l sounds like ‘llllll’ when we say it. Children can then start to read words by blending the
sounds together to make a word.
Phonic Sound: the sound the letter makes, not the name of the letter eg ‘r’ makes the sound ‘rrrrr’
not ‘arr’
Speed Sounds: The ‘pure’ sound of the letter (without ‘uh’ on the end)
Fred Talk: To say the individual sounds that make up a word in the Read Write Inc. Phonics reading
programme
Fred Fingers: A way for children to physically sound out each sound in a word to support reading as
well as spelling
Red words: These words cannot be segmented into sounds. Children need to learn these words by
sight.
Green words: These words can be segmented into sounds
Digraph: A digraph is 2 letters together to make one sound eg: ay, sh,
Trigraph: A trigraph is a group of 3 letters that make one sound eg: air, igh
Blending: To say the individual sounds that make up a word and blend them together to hear the
whole word for reading e.g. s-a-t becomes sat. We say you blend to read and segment (see below) to
spell.
Segmenting: To write or spell a word by listening for the sounds in the word and deciding which
letters represent those sounds. We say you blend to read and segment to spell.
Decoding: To read a word by saying the sounds, then blending those sounds together to form the
word.
How can I help prepare my child for the phonic test?
‘When you see the monsters face Fred talk please
no need to race’
Practice reading made up words using set 2/3 sounds eg:
http://www.oxfordowl.co.uk/home/readingowl/expert-help/the-year-1-phonics-screeningcheck
How can you help your child at home?
The following websites will help you become familiar with the practice of
RWI and sound pronunciation.
To help you with ‘sound pronunciation’
http://www.ruthmiskin.com/en/resources/sound-pronunciation-guide/
Top tips for parents
http://www.ruthmiskin.com/en/resources/videos/?q=parent
Facebook group with videos
https://www.facebook.com/miskin.education
Phonic support and videos
http://www.oxfordowl.co.uk/for-home/reading-owl/expert-help/phonics-made-easy
The Read Write Inc flash cards are available to buy online
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Read-Write-Inc-Phonics-Flashcards/dp/0198386818
Reading at home
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Read everything… menus, road signs, building names, cereal boxes…just
anything and everything!
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Show off your child’s reading… read to relatives, read to friends, let someone
else also say how proud they are of your child. It will make them feel amazing.
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Read all sorts of books including books which they cannot read themselves.
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Don’t forget how invaluable our libraries are… and FREE!!
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Share a story at bedtime.
The following website has lots of free eBooks to read, and fun games to play, and there are lots of
other good sites to visit too.
http://www.oxfordowl.co.uk/home/reading-owl/find-a-book
Questions to ask when reading with your child:
What is the character saying?
What is that character thinking?
What do you think happens next?
What do you think that character is feeling now?
What is happening?